Month: June 2017

Good morning from Bucharest! We had an amazing day exploring the city yesterday after a debrief meeting. Lots of tears were shed and lots of emotions were shared, but it was good. It is so great to see how much the team has changed in ONE WEEK. Not only do they love each other more, they love these children harder. Nothing makes me happier. Here are a couple “touristy” pictures from yesterday. My phone is currently half way broken so I apologize for the quality.

This week would have been completely different if the team would not have had such great leaders. I thought it was fitting that they wrap up the trip with their perspective on how the week went.

Here is the female leader Paige’s blog:

Hi, my name is Paige. This week I had the pleasure of co-leading this amazing group with Mojo. A couple of months ago I had no idea what this summer would hold, there were so many things that were unknown. Mojo is one of my really good friends and he was helping me talk through a couple of decisions I had to make. One day he half jokingly asked me if I would be interested in co-leading the trip to Romania he was planning with the college group. This question caught me off guard knowing that the trip was full and already being planned. We talked a bit more and he told me that if I was at all interested in going to attend the first group meeting which was taking place that very night. When Mojo asked me, something inside me told me that I should go on the trip. I attended the meeting and told Mojo soon after that I would love to help him lead the trip. I don’t have a whole lot of experience leading in this way, especially leading people who are basically my peers. In preparing for the trip I began to grow more and more excited. I knew a lot of planning goes into a trip like this, what I hadn’t realized was just how much, and how much Mojo had already planned from stepping of the plane last year and the day I jumped in as his co-leader. We worked through the rest of the minor details, worked to gather supplies, and worked to try and plan for the unpredictable. All the time and preparation the whole team put in before the trip truly paid off. The camp went by almost seamlessly as we tried to plan for every possibility, problem solving as we went. The camp went by almost seamlessly as we tried to plan for every possibility, problem solving as we went. I am so proud of the whole team and what was accomplished during our time here. I could see each and every camper was moved by his or her experience at camp. Our team changed, grew closer together, and loved these kids more than I ever thought possible. It’s hard to think that in four short days we could love these kids so much and see love in return from children we could barely communicate with and hardly know. There is no doubt the relationships that were built will last forever in our hearts. My prayer for these kids is for them to understand the gift of the gospel (many of them heard it for the first time this week). And to understand how much God loves them even when they don’t get to see love from humans every day. I pray that I will see these kids again one day. If not on Earth then in Heaven in the presence of God where we can rejoice in His name together once again.

And the (returning) male leader Mojo’s vlog:

I just dropped the team off at the airport and they are on their way to London, then straight home to Los Angeles. No words can describe how fun, enthusiastic and incredible this team was. We had such an amazing week and I can say confidently, that each team member is going home with a bigger heart.

Thank you, for the final time, for everyone who has contributed to this week. It takes a village to make the logistics work but I know so so so many had a huge hand in making it possible financially and spiritually.

We all dreaded Friday, the final day of camp, and saying goodbye to all the kids. I wasn’t even looking forward to it and I knew I was going to see them in August. But at the same time, we were all totally mentally and physically exhausted so we knew we needed to end the camp on a high and say those painful goodbyes.

The journey for me was quick and easy and then I met the children as they got dropped off at a park. I took 7 girls back to their “homes” on the other side of Bucharest in India. When we pulled up they all chanted “We don’t want to live in India we want to go back to camp.” Im usually very jaded when it comes to these times. I understand the circumstances these kids live in, but after such a great week with these girls, my heart broke to leave them without bathrooms, sharing a room with 10 others, abuse, drinking and drugs. Reality hit me hard and it was horrible. We are actually going to go visit them this week and give them camp pictures from the week. I already can’t wait to see them!

Here is one of the final bloggers of this week, Krista:

Hey guys, it’s Krista! I am super blessed to have been able to serve with Hope Rescue Center for the second time this past week. As great as my time serving has been, yesterday was a really difficult day for all of our team because it was the day we had to take all of the kids back home. We started off our day with breakfast and then we had a short program with games, music, dancing and a testimony given by Jessie. As sad as we all were knowing that we would have to say goodbye, we decided that rather than getting emotional it was best for us to make the most out of these final hours with these kids. We made sure to treasure every moment with them and make sure to take in all of their smiles and laughs and really be there with them in that moment. After program ended we immediately got on the bus. You could tell how sad the kids were that the week was coming to an end and they kept telling us how much they loved us and how they would miss us after we left. When it was time to say goodbye we all broke down in tears. These kids were some of the most talented, selfless, kind hearted children I have ever met and they impacted me so much. They will always have a piece of my heart. I am still processing everything that happened this past week, and as much as I am missing them right now, I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Thanks for reading!

Sorry for the lack of pictures…I think the team was too busy bonding and spending their last few hours with the kids to take too any! I will have more, way more in the final post tomorrow.

Saturday we are exploring Bucharest in 95 degree heat, with a great final meal together and a debrief meeting. AKA time to cry together.

Be in touch with the final bloggers and camp 1 post as soon as possible! Thanks for reading all week and caring about us over here in Romania! We appreciate your prayers and love for us!

Thursday was an AMAZING day at camp. Not only for the children, but for us volunteers as well! We took the kids to an adventure park after lunch where they could jump on trampolines, do a ropes course, or go tubbing. We can’t let the kids have alllllll the fun so we choose a place that has an adults ropes course too. Last year during the ropes course, I had a tiny meltdown because I could not tarzan swing from 300 feet in the air to the next platform. I hate heights, I don’t like doing super naturey things, yet I never fail to say YES to an extremely difficult ropes course at camp. This year was no different. I won’t go into too much detail but I completed the course (!!!) with only one Romanian ropes course staff member having to drag me across swinging logs kicking and screaming. But, I completed the course. I COMPLETED THE COURSE. I truly hated every minute of it besides the long zip line at the end but I will probably do it again next week.

I think it goes without saying the kids had an amazing time. It was supposed to rain ALL afternoon but it was a gorgeous afternoon on top of the mountain. Here are some pictures:

Rika and Emmanuel have decided to VLOG together instead of write about their experiences here. Anyone who knows me knows I love a good vlog (Head over to the “videos” section to watch mine- shameless plug) So here they are sharing about their time in Romania so far….

Tomorrow we head out to explore Bucharest and enjoy this brutally hot weather we are experiencing. Its crazy to me that the team is already preparing to leave. It is bittersweet. It has been such a great week and I can’t wait for the next team and camp, but this team has been so amazing and it will be sad to see them go! Stay tuned for a couple final blogs written by the leaders of the team tomorrow. And as always, thank you for supporting and praying for the team, the local people here, the kids, and me!